Chapter 2 of Three Minute Stories is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Three Minute Stories is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him. “We will save you,” said White-Wings. “But you must do just what we tell you to do!” said Gray-Back. “I will! I will!” cried poor Shelly-Neck.
Chapter 2 of Three Minute Stories is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5
These definitions explain words found in the current reading and keep every example grounded in its original sentence.
Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, and audio.
inflected form of “beg” — call upon in supplication; entreat
From this reading “Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.”
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading “Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.”
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading “I will!” cried poor Shelly-Neck.”
plural of “friend” — a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading “Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.”
made afraid
From this reading “Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.”
plural of “goose” — web-footed long-necked typically gregarious migratory aquatic birds usually larger and less aquatic than ducks
From this reading “Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.”
destroyed or killed
From this reading “Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.”
except for; apart from
From this reading “Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
In this reading “Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.”
Every word in these five lines is listed here, and every one of them can be played on its own.
Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
inflected form of “beg” — call upon in supplication; entreat
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading “But you must do just what we tell you to do!” said Gray-Back.
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading I will!” cried poor Shelly-Neck.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “But you must do just what we tell you to do!” said Gray-Back.
plural of “friend” — a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
made afraid
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
plural of “goose” — web-footed long-necked typically gregarious migratory aquatic birds usually larger and less aquatic than ducks
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
destroyed or killed
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “But you must do just what we tell you to do!” said Gray-Back.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I will!
and nothing more
From this reading “But you must do just what we tell you to do!” said Gray-Back.
the force of workers available
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading “But you must do just what we tell you to do!” said Gray-Back.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading I will!” cried poor Shelly-Neck.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “We will save you,” said White-Wings.
except for; apart from
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
express in words
From this reading “But you must do just what we tell you to do!” said Gray-Back.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “We will save you,” said White-Wings.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “But you must do just what we tell you to do!” said Gray-Back.
at the time that
From this reading Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “We will save you,” said White-Wings.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading “We will save you,” said White-Wings.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “We will save you,” said White-Wings.
Chapter 2 of Three Minute Stories by Laura Elizabeth Howe Richards holds 411 sentences, grouped into 83 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the source edition, unabridged, and the chapter records which sentences cover which part of the work so that nothing is dropped. Every word can be tapped for its pronunciation and dictionary entry.
Chapter 2 holds 411 sentences of Three Minute Stories, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Three Minute Stories by Laura Elizabeth Howe Richards exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 411 sentences, grouped into 83 sections of at most 5 sentences so that a reader can take the chapter in steady, finishable pieces. The chapter also stores a coverage record mapping every one of its sentences to a part of the work, which is how the edition demonstrates that no line was dropped.
Work through the 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 sections in this chapter is short enough to read once, hear once, and then re-read with the vocabulary in view. Tapping a word plays it alone and opens its dictionary entry with IPA, part of speech and meaning, so the reader is never forced to guess a pronunciation from spelling. Working section by section keeps a long chapter from becoming an undifferentiated wall of text, which is the usual reason a reader abandons a work of this period.
Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 2 can be played aloud in United States English.
Audio covers the whole chapter: any sentence can be played, and any single word within it can be played on its own. The voice uses United States English. For a work of this period that matters, because spelling is an unreliable guide to pronunciation for vocabulary that has fallen out of daily use, and a learner who guesses wrong tends to keep the error. Hearing the word in its own sentence, and then alone, settles it.
Common questions about reading Three Minute Stories by Laura Elizabeth Howe Richards on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1255 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #49751 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #49751, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 104 minutes of reading across 251 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Three Minute Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 3 chapters of Three Minute Stories to begin.
Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.
Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in Three Minute Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
